Death Row Inmate Has Plea For Release Denied

The Nebraska Supreme Court has upheld the denial of a death row inmate's efforts to have his conviction overturned.

Jeffrey Hessler was convicted in 2004 of kidnapping, raping and killing 15-year-old newspaper carrier Heather Guerrero the year before. His conviction and death sentence were upheld on direct appeal in 2007.

Friday's ruling is the second time Hessler has had a motion for post-conviction relief denied. Inmates typically file post-conviction relief motions after they have exhausted all other appeals.

This time, Hessler issued a myriad of claims, including that he was too mentally ill at the time of the crime to know right from wrong.

On Friday, the Nebraska Supreme Court agreed with a lower court judge's ruling that Hessler's claims had already been addressed or should have been appealed earlier.